Rhys Hoskins Still a Thorn in Mets' Side Even After Leaving NL East

The Mets can't stand the former Phillies slugger.

Rhys Hoskins spent the first six years of his career as a fan favorite for the Philadelphia Phillies, but the two sides parted ways this offseason. Hoskins chose to sign a two-year deal with the Milwaukee Brewers worth $34 million. His new uniform did not help Hoskins kick old habits, though. He continues to be a thorn in the side of former divisional rival New York Mets.

The Mets hosted the Brewers this weekend as the first series of the 2024 season for both sides. The fireworks started in the eighth inning on Opening Day after Hoskins slid into second base, undercutting New York infielder Jeff McNeil in the process. McNeil was unhappy about Hoskins' slide and yelled at the slugger as he headed back to the dugout. Hoskins responded by making a crying face gesture at McNeil, leading to the first benches-clearing incident of the season.

Postgame showers did little to cool heads as both sides sniped at each other in press conferences after the game. McNeil accused Hoskins of trying "to put a spike into someone’s leg," and that Hoskins has a history of questionable slides into second. Hoskins defended himself, saying he was just trying to play baseball and he can't help it if a "certain someone" took issue with how he slid.

The beautiful thing about baseball is, in many instances, everybody has to suit up and play each other again immediately following an incident like this. Such was the case on Saturday, as the Mets and Brewers kicked off the second contest of their three-game series early in the afternoon. Hoskins wasted no time in reminding New York how much of a pain he can really be.

The slugger came to the plate in the top of the first with the chance to do some early damage. He did so, smacking a two-run single into left field. The next time Hoskins entered the batter's box Milwaukee was up, 4-0, and had a man on base. He mashed a home run to add to his team's lead and brought himself up to four RBIs on the day. Two innings later Hoskins would touch home following a balk. After that, New York apparently reached its breaking point and threw behind Hoskins in the top of the seventh while down 6-2. That led to an ejection for Mets reliever Yohan Ramírez.

Hoskins is off to a hot start in 2024 after missing all of 2023 with a knee injury. Much to the Mets' chagrin. Hoskins wasn't really dominant against New York while he was in the NL East, but he has gotten under the team's collective skin a few times. Most famously, Hoskins took a full 30 seconds to round the bases after hitting a home run off Mets reliever Jacob Rhame in 2019 because Rhame threw at his head the previous evening.

The more things change, the more they stay the same, as the saying goes. Hoskins is out of the NL East and wearing a different uniform but the Mets still do not like him. If he keeps producing at his current rate this weekend, Hoskins won't be giving New York fans any reason to change their minds.

Liam McKeone is a staff writer at The Big Lead.